In Session » Jason Hollemanhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics
Tennessee PoliticsMon, 07 Apr 2014 14:51:50 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.6I’ll see your vice mayor and raise you a former mayorhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/ill-see-your-vice-mayor-and-raise-you-a-former-mayor/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/ill-see-your-vice-mayor-and-raise-you-a-former-mayor/#commentsTue, 10 Sep 2013 20:41:59 +0000Michael Casshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=20209Not to be outdone by Jeff Yarbro’s plan to have Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors co-host a Senate District 21 campaign fund-raiser, rival candidate Jason Holleman announced today that he’ll do Yarbro one better, though also once removed from elected officialdom.

Former Mayor Bill Purcell “will open up his East Nashville home” on Oct. 8 for a Holleman fund-raiser, Holleman’s campaign announced this afternoon, about three hours after Yarbro’s announcement.

Holleman, a Metro councilman, also plans fund-raisers in the Richland-West End neighborhood on Wednesday and in Belmont-Hillsboro on Oct. 17. Former Councilman Keith Durbin, who is now the city’s chief information officer and part of Mayor Karl Dean’s administration, will co-host the latter event.

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/ill-see-your-vice-mayor-and-raise-you-a-former-mayor/feed/0Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors heads up host list for Jeff Yarbro fund-raiserhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/vice-mayor-diane-neighbors-heads-up-host-list-for-jeff-yarbro-fund-raiser/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/vice-mayor-diane-neighbors-heads-up-host-list-for-jeff-yarbro-fund-raiser/#commentsTue, 10 Sep 2013 16:22:25 +0000Michael Casshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=20206It won’t come as a shock to Metro insiders, but Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors appears to be backing a different horse in the Tennessee Senate District 21 race than the horse who serves on the Metro Council with her.

Neighbors’ name is the first on a long list of hosts for a fund-raiser that attorney Jeff Yarbro is holding in East Nashville next week. Yarbro is running against Councilman Jason Holleman, also an attorney, while Mary Mancini, executive director of Tennessee Citizen Action, is considering getting in the race as well.

Neighbors presides over the Metro Council. Council members Anthony Davis, Scott Davis, Frank Harrison, Lonnell Matthews and Peter Westerholm are also on the host list. Davis, Davis and Westerholm represent various parts of East Nashville.

Holleman, who represents Sylvan Park, has rubbed some movers and shakers the wrong way by opposing Mayor Karl Dean’s proposals for a new convention center (which the council approved) and fairgrounds redevelopment (which it rejected). But Holleman and his backers have said over the years that he votes for Dean’s agenda much more often than not.

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/vice-mayor-diane-neighbors-heads-up-host-list-for-jeff-yarbro-fund-raiser/feed/0Jeff Yarbro steps up campaign in Senate District 21http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/jeff-yarbro-steps-up-campaign-in-senate-district-21/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/jeff-yarbro-steps-up-campaign-in-senate-district-21/#commentsThu, 05 Sep 2013 21:46:34 +0000Chas Siskhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=20151With the race in Senate District 21 beginning to look like a three-person battle, attorney Jeff Yarbro appears to be stepping up his campaign.

Yarbro sent out a mass email to potential supporters Thursday afternoon. The last time the Democratic lawyer blasted a message was in early May, when he thanked state Sen. Douglas Henry, the incumbent who defeated him three years ago, upon Henry’s retirement announcement.

Yarbro laid out portions of his platform, asked for donations and urged recipients to get involved in his campaign.

“Let’s get to work,” he concluded.

The timing may be coincidental, but it comes as a third Democrat, long-time activist Mary Mancini, has been weighing whether to get into the race. Metro Councilman Jason Holleman has already declared he plans to run.

The seat appears to be a lock for the Democrats, so the winner of the primary will have a major edge in the general election. The district covers portions of East Nashville, Sylvan Park, Vanderbilt, Green Hills and Antioch.

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2013/jeff-yarbro-steps-up-campaign-in-senate-district-21/feed/0Buses would grind to a halt, hospital would close without Metro subsidies, department heads tell councilhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2012/buses-would-grind-to-a-halt-hospital-would-close-without-metro-subsidies-department-heads-tell-council/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2012/buses-would-grind-to-a-halt-hospital-would-close-without-metro-subsidies-department-heads-tell-council/#commentsWed, 23 May 2012 15:42:53 +0000Michael Casshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=17159Ending Metro government’s subsidies of the city’s bus system and safety-net hospital would put the hospital out of business and make Nashville a unique place in the world of mass transit, department heads testified at Metro Council budget hearings Tuesday evening.

“We would become the only city of any size in the United States that does not provide – or attempt to provide – a balanced approach to transportation, which is roads, transit, bicycles and sidewalks,” said Paul Ballard, CEO of the Metro Transit Authority.

Ballard was asked about the impact of MTA losing its subsidy – which Mayor Karl Dean wants to raise by $3.3 million to $29.62 million – a day after the free-market advocates at the Beacon Center of Tennessee said it should be eliminated.

The center’s Justin Owen and Ryan Turbeville wrote that Nashville should “stop wasting money on ‘build it and they will come’ mass transit ideas” and “instead look into responsible methods to deal with transportation needs and consider public-private partnerships to reduce the rising transportation costs borne by taxpayers.”

Prompted by Councilwoman Megan Barry’s question, Ballard gave a litany of consequences to such a choice, which would slash 50 percent of MTA’s overall funding.

He said the bus service’s 11 million passenger trips each year would be taken by car instead – “for those who have that option.” Congestion would increase, air quality would decline, unemployment would rise – many of MTA’s riders use its buses to get to work – and the AccessRide program for people with disabilities would end, Ballard said.

The Beacon Center, looking to find at least $100 million in cuts to offset what the mayor proposes to raise with a 53-cent property tax increase, also recommended that Nashville “get out of the hospital business” by selling or leasing Nashville General Hospital at Meharry. Jason Boyd, interim CEO of the Metro Hospital Authority, said eliminating the authority’s $43.2 million subsidy – some of which pays for two other city-owned health-care facilities – would mean the end of the hospital.

“The bottom line is that the hospital would cease to exist,” Boyd said in response to a question from Councilman Sean McGuire, chairman of the council’s Budget and Finance Committee.

Other hospitals would have to absorb the facility’s $85 million in uncompensated care for the indigent population, and nearby Meharry Medical College, which uses the hospital as a teaching facility, could lose its accreditation if General Hospital shut down, Boyd added as a large group of doctors in white lab coats watched from the gallery.

Officials also pointed out during the 77-minute hearing that the hospital isn’t Metro’s to buy or sell. It leases the facility from Meharry for $4 million a year and will continue to do so through 2028, with lease payments going toward debt service on bonds the medical school issued to make improvements to the facility under an agreement with the city.

“It’s not the Metropolitan government’s asset to sell,” Councilman Jason Holleman said. “I think it’s important for people to understand that.

“There’s a substantial term on that lease, and even if the city chose to try to unwind that, there would be serious financial consequences to that.”

Public hearings about zoning bills – ranging from run-of-the mill, little noticed rezoning matters to noisy affairs about major developments (and chickens) – could become a more common sight at Metro Council meetings.

Councilman Jason Holleman said today that he’ll sponsor legislation that would have the council hold zoning hearings once a month, which would be a change from the long-established practice of holding them every other month.

Holleman said the proposed change would make it easier for the council to defer bills that still need work, because a one-month deferral would cause fewer problems for zoning applicants. That could mean fewer projects get shelved by developers, he said.

Holleman, who was Mt. Juliet’s full-time city attorney before starting a new law practice this month with former Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell, said Mt. Juliet’s city council holds zoning hearings at every meeting.

“It seemed like there was a happy medium in there” for Metro, said Holleman, who continues to do legal work for Mt. Juliet.

The council meets twice a month, on the first and third Tuesdays. Zoning hearings would be held on the first Tuesday. They now take place on the first Tuesday of odd-numbered months.

Holleman said the only expected cost associated with the change to monthly hearings is an extra $200 to $300 a year for additional meeting notices. He said the benefits he expects “are certainly worth a couple of hundred extra bucks a year.”

Holleman said the rule change will be on the council’s agenda Feb. 7. If approved, the change will take effect in June.

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2012/metro-council-might-hold-zoning-public-hearings-once-a-month/feed/0Could CBID tax increase help pay Predators subsidy?http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/could-cbid-tax-increase-help-pay-predators-subsidy/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/could-cbid-tax-increase-help-pay-predators-subsidy/#commentsMon, 21 Nov 2011 20:48:11 +0000Nate Rauhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=15375During research for yesterday’s story about Metro’s subsidy for the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena, multiple sources told me the city was pondering a creative approach to help foot the bill.

Supporters of the subsidy often argue that Predators home games have an enormous positive impact on the bars and restaurants surrounding the arena. With that in mind, some city leaders have pondered whether those same business owners could help fund the arena subsidy.

Downtown property owners located in the so-called Central Business Improvement District are already assessed a levy in order to cover the costs of the increased government services in the area. The extra tax, which currently equals an additional 23 cents per $100 of property value, raised $1.5 million for the CBID last year.

Could Metro increase this rate to help pay for some of the $7.8 million subsidy to the Predators? It might make sense for those business owners to pay a little extra in property taxes, since they’re the ones apparently benefiting from Predators home games.

Progressive Metro Council members on opposite sides of the political divide agreed the issue warranted consideration, but the city’s finance chief seemed to shoot down the idea.

At-large Councilwoman Megan Barry chaired the council budget and finance committee last year and has mostly supported Mayor Karl Dean’s administration thus far. Barry, who opposed the subsidy deal in 2008, indicated that Metro ought to study raising the CBID tax.

“In challenging economic times it’s sensible to explore how those who benefit from a public project can do more to help offset costs,” Barry said. “Revenue strategies related to the Predators’ lease deal are certainly something we should examine in more depth.”

Councilman Jason Holleman, on the other hand, supported the Predators deal in 2008, but has vocally opposed Dean initiatives such as the new convention center and the closing of the state fairgrounds. Holleman said the state of the Metro budget should provoke Metro to consider a change.

“It’s more difficult to justify spending money on an entertainment venue,” Holleman said, noting Metro’s budget crunch and the fact that tourism taxes that had paid for the subsidy now go to Music City Center.

Finance Director Rich Riebeling, however, said the mayor’s office has not looked into increasing the CBID levy, because consideration of such an increase must come from the downtown property owners.

“Under state law, the taxes charged by a Central Improvement District must be initiated and approved by a majority of the property owners within the area,” Riebeling said.

Formal negotiations with the Predators ownership group, now led by Chairman Tom Cigarran, have not begun yet, according to Riebeling.

“We would anticipate taking a hard look at all issues and possibly propose changes that would be beneficial to all parties,” Riebeling said.

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/could-cbid-tax-increase-help-pay-predators-subsidy/feed/1Absent councilman says he made another commitment before inauguration date was sethttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/absent-councilman-says-he-made-another-commitment-before-inauguration-date-was-set/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/absent-councilman-says-he-made-another-commitment-before-inauguration-date-was-set/#commentsSat, 24 Sep 2011 14:44:55 +0000Michael Casshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=14904Only one Metro Council member was missing from Friday’s swearing-in ceremony for Mayor Karl Dean, Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors and the council.

The fact that it was second-term Councilman Jason Holleman, whom Dean tried to unseat this summer by backing a challenger for the hotly contested District 24 post, caught some politicos’ eyes.

But Holleman, who has been trying to have a better relationship with Dean’s administration since the election – which he wound up winning by a large margin – said he was simply out of town with his wife due to a prior commitment.

“I’m in Montreal, Quebec this week,” he wrote in an email Friday night responding to a question about his reason for not attending the ceremony. “I had purchased a flight to accompany Margaret to a conference up here prior to the announcement of date of the inauguraration.”

]]>http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/absent-councilman-says-he-made-another-commitment-before-inauguration-date-was-set/feed/0Final acts: Breakdown of Metro Council’s vote for Criminal Court clerkhttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/final-acts-breakdown-of-metro-councils-vote-for-criminal-court-clerk/
http://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/2011/final-acts-breakdown-of-metro-councils-vote-for-criminal-court-clerk/#commentsWed, 17 Aug 2011 15:53:38 +0000Michael Casshttp://blogs.tennessean.com/politics/?p=14595On the final night of the 2007-11 term, the Metro Council solidly got behind former Vice Mayor Howard Gentry on Tuesday to be the next Davidson County Criminal Court clerk. But each of the five candidates received at least one vote.

You can look at who voted for whom here. To my mind, a couple of interesting votes came from the sometimes-mistaken-for-each-other “JaHoll” councilmen. (Yes, I just made up that phrase.)

While Jamie Hollin advised Councilman Michael Craddock’s aborted mayoral campaign earlier this year, he voted for a different candidate Tuesday: Steven Murff, a former longtime Davidson County court official who probably had the most technical expertise to do the job.

Meanwhile, Jason Holleman, who recently defeated a challenger Mayor Karl Dean endorsed in a race both sides seemed to feel democracy itself was hinging on, voted not for Craddock – the man whose election would have been the biggest blow to Dean – but for Gentry, whom Dean has spoken highly of. (“The mayor and I never talked about this,” Gentry told reporters after the vote. “If I was the mayor’s choice, I’m proud of that.”)

At the same time, council members Emily Evans and Mike Jameson, who are good friends of Holleman’s and have also butted heads with Dean’s administration, joined Hollin in voting for Murff, not Craddock. Craddock’s support came entirely from fellow conservatives, while Gentry put together a coalition of African-Americans, progressives and moderates.

The piece, whose theme is Holleman’s commitment to education, includes a head shot of Coverstone, who praises the District 24 councilman’s advocacy for students, parents and teachers and his “extremely valuable” engagement on education issues “in his district and at a city-wide level.”

The mailer calls Coverstone a “former Metro School Board Member,” which he is. He served on the board for about a year before stepping down in 2009 to run the school district’s charter school efforts, and last week he added leadership of a new “innovation school zone” of 10 low-performing schools to his portfolio. He previously worked at Montgomery Bell Academy.

Coverstone said there was no school district rule against his political activity and that he wasn’t representing the district anyway.

“I was simply representing myself as a citizen,” he said.

Schools Director Jesse Register said district employees “need to use discretion.” He said he didn’t know what kind of ad Coverstone had appeared in.

“It’s got to be personal. It has to be separated from the professional work,” he said. “This district will work with Jason Holleman or Sarah Lodge (Tally).”

Coverstone also praised Holleman last week on Facebook, where a mutual friend of ours was speaking out in support of the councilman. Election Day is Thursday.

The message – which links to what appears to be a new campaign mail piece with the same theme – praises Holleman’s skills in an implied contrast with the inexperience of his challenger, Sarah Lodge Tally:

Managing the issues that face our neighborhoods isn’t easy. It’s more than slogans. It’s showing up to meeting after meeting after meeting, listening to all of the diverse viewpoints that make up our Council district, having the substantive knowledge of how our local government works, and forging compromise and consensus through skillful diplomacy.